THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
nationthailand

Tawit on cusp of breakthrough after stretching lead

Tawit on cusp of breakthrough after stretching lead

Bandar Seri Begawan - Thailand’s Tawit Polthai continued his fine form by firing a seven-under-par 63 to strengthen his position atop the leaderboard following the penultimate round of the Brunei Championships on Friday.


The 25-year-old Thai, who entered the round with a three-shot lead, extended his advantage to four with his three-day total of 18-under-par 192 at the US$75,000 event.
Thai star Prom Meesawat, who is playing on a sponsor’s invitation, posted a sizzling 62 to share second place with American Austen Truslow (64) while Chinese Taipei’s Wang Wei-lun (64) trails Tawit by six shots in fourth place at The Empire Hotel and Country Club.
Tawit, who traded eight birdies against one bogey, had a hot putter to thank for after navigating around the greens in 22 putts.
“My putting was really good today, I was making a lot of putts from 15-feet. I just stuck to my game plan even though I knew a lot of the guys were chasing me from behind,” he said.
The Thai relishes the opportunity to play with his idol Prom and will continue to adopt a relaxed approach in the final round as he stays on track for a maiden Asian Development Tour (ADT) win.
“I just want to have fun tomorrow, it will be the first time I am playing in the final group and I am excited to be playing with Prom tomorrow,” added Tawit.
Prom made a fast start on “moving day” with five birdies in his opening nine holes to make the turn in 30. He notched birdies on holes 11,12, 14 and 15 before dropping a shot on hole 17 for an inward 32.
“I was hitting it well and was confident in my irons so I was able to give myself a lot of birdie opportunities today. I wouldn’t count hole 17 as a mistake because I hit a good drive but if it was just one yard longer, it would have crossed the water hazard.
“This isn’t a long course, so with my distance, I had to take risks like that. Tawit will be the man to catch and I am excited for the challenge tomorrow,” added Prom, a two-time Asian Tour winner.

Leading third round scores:
192 - Tawit Polthai (THA) 65-64-63.
196 - Prom Meesawat (THA) 66-68-62, Austen Truslow (USA) 65-67-64.
198 - Wang Wei-lun (TPE) 66-68-64.
199 - Naoki Sekito (JPN) 68-67-64, Casey O’Toole (USA) 65-69-65.
201 - Suttijet Kooratanapisan (THA) 69-66-66, Sarit Suwannarut (THA) 66-68-67.

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